UTSA Libraries welcomes submissions for Adopt a Free Textbook grants.
These grants support the adoption and creation of free textbooks as the primary textbooks in a single course or in multiple sections of a course.
| Grant | Outcome | Student Cost | Licensing Requirement | Individual Award Range | Group Award Range |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No Cost | Adoption of a library e-book or other no cost learning materials | No cost | Open licensing not required. | $500 | $1,000-2,000 |
| OER | Adoption of existing open educational resources | Free | Creative Commons | $1,000 | $1,500-3,000 |
| Design | Modification, remixing, or authoring of original OER | Free | Creative Commons | $3,500-5,000 | $5,000-$10,000 |
Use of Awards
Awards may be used to support professional development, to purchase materials/supplies that support teaching, or to fund student work on the proposed project. Awards may not be used as a salary supplement.
Eligibility
- Open to all UTSA faculty.
- Applicants must be the instructor of record for the course.
Selection
Applications are ranked and selected by:
- Students impacted: course enrollment.
- Total student savings.
- Course drop, fail, withdraw rate.
Deliverables
- Collaborate with a librarian to find free textbooks
- Replace the primary textbook(s) with free textbook(s)
- For No Cost and Adoption: teach with the free textbooks 4 semesters
- Design author commitment is 6-12 months; teaching commitment is 2 semesters
- Marking course as Low Cost Textbook course in the Course Search
- Complete an OER Certification Course (2 hours): No Cost & Adoption tiers
- Serve as an OER advocate: share your experience with other faculty
- Complete a final report that includes:
- Student evaluations of the textbook
- Anonymized final grades, including drop, fail, and withdraw rates
- Final syllabus and future plans
- For Design Grants:
- Share OER in national and Texas repositories
- Complete a Design Certification course (4 hours)
Support
All Grants
To support grants, the UTSA Libraries will provide textbook matches for adoption and adaptation. Librarians have expertise with Creative Commons licenses and copyright and fair use: foundational aspects of any OER project. The library works with Academic Innovation to integrate final projects into Blackboard, and can create Research Guides accessible outside the LMS. The library is an OpenStax Partner School and a member of both the Open Education Network and Texas Digital Library.
Design Grants
The UTSA Libraries team will support grant projects through all phases: from crafting a publication timeline to training on UTSA Pressbooks. Additional support includes accessibility guidance in UTSA Pressbooks, ISBN and DOI assignment, and sharing final OER for maximum reach and preservation. Read more on OER Creation: Support for Faculty Authors.
Application Checklist
Course Information
- • Syllabus
- • Current textbooks, including price
Your Plan
- • Proposed Textbooks
- • Spending Plan
File Uploads
- • Narrative
- • Timeline
- • Group and Design Grants:
- • Letter of Support
- •Budget estimate
Apply Now
Applications are due Monday, March 20, 2023.
Please submit a separate application for each course.
Looking for more grant opportunities? Check out the state funded OER grants.
FAQ
OER are “teaching, learning and research materials in any medium - digital or otherwise - that reside in the public domain or have been released under an open license that permits no-cost access, use, adaptation and redistribution by others with no or limited restrictions.(UNESCO, 2022).
Your librarian is your OER beacon. Contact your librarian with requests for potential no cost or OER matches for your project.
The grant tiers reflect the library’s commitment to our program donors and prudent stewardship of donor and library funds in support of UTSA students' needs. UTSA Libraries also seeks to award and fund innovative open textbooks with Design Grants, giving voice to UTSA faculty and students. With the recent acquisition of UTSA Pressbooks, the library is empowering faculty and students to create unique OER that capture the UTSA student experience and to share the unique perspectives of our diverse student body.
Open textbook publishing projects take significantly more time than adopting existing OER as-is, so the intent behind the Design grants is to provide support for faculty undertaking these large initiatives. The higher award amount for Design Grants is reflective of the considerable time investment and support needed to see an open textbook publishing project to completion. OER Adoption and Design projects also promise continued access to a textbook after a class ends, better supporting the needs of our students after graduation and beyond.
Creative Commons licensing is an attribute of OER that truly sets it apart from projects that propose the adoption of No Cost resources like library e-books. With library e-books,students lose access once they leave UTSA. In the library’s work with Student Government Association on OER initiatives, UTSA SGA leadership points to continued access as key to students’ success in their chosen professions: OER provide this continuous access. Not only are OER continuously available, but they are also regularly updated.
Historically the grants have been funded by the UTSA Libraries with support from President Eighmy and Peggy Eighmy and support from the Provost's Office. In 2021, we were very fortunate to receive a generous donation from Scott Sawtelle and Kathleen Curry, along with a commitment to support the program for the next 3 years. The grant tiers reflect the library’s commitment to our program donors and responsible stewardship of donor and library funds in support of UTSA students' needs.
Yes, but the expectation is that you will move to openly licensed content: either adopting, modifying existing OER, or designing new OER for your course.
Yes. We encourage you to apply.
OER Adoption and OER Certification Course content will be delivered via Blackboard in an online asynchronous format. One synchronous session to answer Q&A may be held, but will also be recorded for those unable to attend. The OER Adoption Course is 2-hours, and the OER Design Course is slated for 4 hours. Grant recipients will receive notification once the appropriate course is ready and will have 1 year from course open date to complete the course content, including a final comprehensive exam on the concepts.
No. The intent of the funds is to support faculty teaching with professional development, purchase of teaching equipment and supplies, and payment for student work on proposed projects.
The award follows you throughout the 4 semesters of the grant and is available to support your project needs. Our team sends regular spending reminders and works with the UTSA Libraries Dean’s Office staff to ensure spending stays on track and within budget.
Once you have all of your files ready, 30 minutes or less.
Check your junk mail folder first. If you still don't see a confirmation email message, contact us to verify or cancel your reservation.
We plan to notify all applicants by April 1, 2023. If this should change, we will share a new estimated timeline with all applicants.
Awards may be used to support professional development, to purchase materials/supplies that support teaching, or to fund student work on the proposed project. Awards may not be used as a salary supplement.
Questions?
Unsure which application is the best fit or have other questions? Email us at oer@utsa.edu.